bribes 1 of 2

noun

plural of bribe
as in incentives
something given or promised in order to improperly influence a person's conduct or decision that judge refused a huge bribe to dismiss the charges against the wealthy defendant

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bribes

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of bribe
as in buys
to influence someone with a bribe meat inspectors were bribed, and the contaminated beef was sold to the public

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of bribes
Noun
Some of the contracts appear to have been padded to pay bribes to Diamantis. — Kevin Rennie, Hartford Courant, 3 Oct. 2026 These scandals, which included massive bribes and kickbacks on projects across the continent, contributed to a political crisis that, in 2016, ended Dilma Rousseff’s presidency and, in 2018, sent Lula to prison. — Matias Spektor, Foreign Affairs, 2 Oct. 2026 Many choose to make use of a corrupt brokerage system, where people with connections in the foreign ministry and other regime appendages facilitate large bribes for new, and sometimes fake, documentation. — Andrew Nachemson, The Dial, 22 Sep. 2026 Diamantis has another pending criminal case in federal court, where he's accused of taking bribes to quash a state audit of an eye doctor accused of Medicaid fraud. — CBS News, 18 Sep. 2026 He was accused of extorting private contractors for bribes between 2018 and 2021 in exchange for helping the companies keep and obtain work on school construction contracts. — David Zimmermann, The Washington Examiner, 17 Sep. 2026 Malone was arrested and charged with accepting more than $180,000 in bribes from another homelessness-aid nonprofit. — ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026 Malone was charged in a 21-count indictment accusing her of taking more than $180,000 in bribes and kickbacks from Alexander Soofer, who was the executive director of the nonprofit Abundant Blessings. — Brittny Mejia, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026 About a decade ago, this office also prosecuted FIFA officials and sports-marketing executives for racketeering, wire fraud and money laundering over bribes and kickbacks. — Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Verb
In one of the film’s most madcap and darkly comedic moments, Linda bribes her daughter with the promise of a pet hamster — who turns out to be a biter, desperate to escape its box. — Rachel Brodsky, Rolling Stone, 8 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bribes
  1. incentives
  2. buys
  3. fixes
  4. lures
  5. seduces
  6. poisons
  7. corrupts
  8. entices
Noun
  • Companies have plenty of incentives to make that advertising palatable to consumers, but Ireland believes ads will play a role one way or another.
    — Allison Johnson, The Verge, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The city of Mission ultimately pulled the plug on its tax incentives and threw out the redevelopment agreement.
    — Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of incentives
Verb
  • Balakrishnan, however, cautioned against viewing the issue simply through the lens of who buys the oil, stressing the importance of maintaining freedom of navigation through international waterways.
    — Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Fitzgerald draws the whole class map into the geography—East Egg, where the old money summers, and West Egg across the bay, where Gatsby’s new fortune buys a mansion but never quite buys in.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of buys
Noun
  • Containing pollution, especially gas and chemical contamination, can prove to be wily, requiring ongoing monitoring and fixes.
    — Kim Velsey, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2026
  • City living wrecks sleep, and noise masking is one of the cheapest fixes going.
    — Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of fixes
Verb
  • In the exceedingly bleak ending to the book, Bela realizes that the demon has killed and styled itself after her Grandma Ruth, who lures Russell and Ursula to their death.
    — William Earl, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The Vegetarian by Han Kang, 208 Pages This haunting novel lures readers when a woman’s sudden decision to stop eating meat triggers a destructive crisis in her family.
    — Arabella Hau, Southern Living, 27 Sep. 2026
Definition of lures
Verb
  • Artificial plays like a modern-day parable in which the trickster god seduces the innocent.
    — E. Alex Jung, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Diaz centers music as the emotional vehicle that provides a philosophical structure for the character tropes and in turn psychologically seduces the audience to internalize certain ideas of social dynamics.
    — Damaly Gonzalez, ARTnews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of seduces
Verb
  • Set in 2029 in a future where no mutants have been born in 25 years, Jackman plays an older, grizzlier Wolverine, one whose healing factor is fading as his adamantium skeleton slowly poisons him.
    — Will Harris, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Any infection can progress to a systemic disease that poisons the blood and body.
    — RJ Mackenzie, Popular Science, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of poisons
Verb
  • Forgetting his bond with the land, Mariano awakens the Ch’iqmi, a dark force that corrupts his people.
    — Kevin Giraud, Variety, 25 June 2026
  • One nanny will try to get to the bottom of it before all the partying, power and privilege corrupts her.
    — Denise Petski, Deadline, 21 Apr. 2026
Definition of corrupts
Verb
  • Turkey’s growing hair transplant and restoration industry in particular entices people with easy-to-digest all-inclusive packages advertised on their websites, online placements, and social media.
    — Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The high-concept thriller stars Valeria Bruni Tedeschi as a demonic character called The Stranger, who entices a young mother played by Jasmine Trinca into forging a Faustian pact.
    — Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of entices

Browse Nearby Words

bribers
bribes
bribing
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Cite this Entry

“Bribes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bribes. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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